MEDICINE ON THE FRONT LINES: THE EVOLUTION OF BATTLEFIELD SURGERY

“Medicine on the Front Lines - The Evolution of Battlefield Surgery" is a photographic archive of medical practices performed on the warfront as far back as the Civil War. Based upon the National Museum of Health and Medicine's "Battlefield Surgery 101: From the Civil War to Vietnam", the exhibit illustrates the incredible progress of military medicine since the pre-antibiotic, pre-antiseptic mid-nineteenth century, and speaks to the lives lost and lessons learned in combat.

Advances in trauma surgery, critical care, anesthesiology, infectious disease management, burn care and medical evacuation have inspired and mirrored civilian advances in medicine and reflected expertise honed on the battlefield. These advances continue, such that any American service member who arrives alive at a military treatment facility today is almost certain to survive.

Images and select text are drawn from the "Battlefield Surgery 101: From the Civil War to Vietnam" exhibition catalog produced by the Borden Institute.